


Let's go in the garden

by justinsbuzz



Series: The end... [11]
Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Confrontations, F/M, Family Drama, Family Issues, Fights, Gen, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-07
Updated: 2020-09-07
Packaged: 2021-03-07 01:27:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,322
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26344861
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/justinsbuzz/pseuds/justinsbuzz
Summary: Steven needs a break from everything going on at home, So his friends take him to the garden to see if an old adversary-turned-ally could help him.
Relationships: Connie Maheswaran & Steven Universe
Series: The end... [11]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1509437
Kudos: 6





	1. Arrival

**Author's Note:**

> Breaking the original 32 page story down into a few crucial parts. You're welcome.

Let’s go in the garden

The warp pad hummed, light blooming from beneath five figures who have phased in from another place far from Beach City. Breathing a sigh of relief, they walked forward towards a large hedge wall covered in various colored flowers. Mostly roses. The opening into the garden was a natural archway of two towering juniper trees, their tips bound together into a knot, topped by a lily flower. The outer edges showed more juniper trees, which were once as tall as a full-grown quartz gem, now nearly as tall as blue diamond. Wrapped around them were vines with budding pink flowers. This was not the garden Steven remembered. As Steven, Connie, Amethyst, Peridot, and Patricia walked through the entrance, they were met with more bushes, trees, and small streams of water flowing through small, shallow trenches.

“Wow. She’s been busy.” Steven said in awe.

“No kidding.” Amethyst replied, following the flowing maze of waterways with her eyes.

“This place is insane. A couple of years ago, it looked like a small garden.” Connie said, shocked by what was all around her.

“Now it’s a full-fledged arboretum. I taught her well.” Peridot said, looking at one of the trees, which seems to be growing two drastically different flowers. “Maybe too well.”

“This place… how… wha… This place is amazing!” Patricia squealed. “How do people not know about this? It’s like a- a- I don’t know how to describe the colors I’m seeing! You must have taken Connie here a ton of times!”

“Well… we haven’t been here in a while.” Steven admitted sheepishly. “We’ve been kind of busy. The last time we were here was… two years ago?”

“Back then, the garden wasn’t this full of life.” Connie said, looking up to see a few lapis’ flying overhead, gently watering the plants while avoiding the newcomers. “More than one kind of life.”

“Whoa!” One of the lapis spoke from above, before diving down and landing in front of them. “Um, sorry. Not sure how you got here, but this is kind of a private place. If you’re looking to buy anything, you might need to take a hard left outside and keep walking until you find a small looking house.”

“Oh we’re not looking to get anything.” Steven replied. “I’m actually here to see-”

“Steven?!” A slow voice could be heard from a distance between the trees. Everyone’s attention had turned to a gem, wearing a sleeveless, orange and yellow robe. As they came closer, Steven could see the turquoise horns on her head. At one point, she was Steven’s greatest fear. Now, no longer a scowling menace bearing gritted teeth, this gem was nothing more but a friendly, gentle giant with braided hair. Jasper.

“Jasper?” Steven exclaimed, never seeing Jasper look both happy, and not at all menacing.

“Steven!” Jasper exclaimed as she got closer, her arms outstretched. But before she got to Steven, she stopped merely a few feet from Steven “Oh, um, Is it alright if I hug you?”

“Uh… Sure?” Steven replied, sounding unsure. Within half a second, Jasper's arms wrapped around Steven in a friendly embrace. This was highly surprising, since 4 years ago she not only met Steven, but also terrorized him for over a year. “Glad to see you’re doing okay.”

“Glad to see you’re still alive!” Jasper spoke before looking around at everyone else. “I’m sorry, um, anyone up for a group hug?”

Amethyst shrugged and moved in. Connie and Peridot reluctantly joined in as well. Patricia, on the other hand, was frozen in place as she looked on at the giant woman that stood before her. Jasper looked up to see a new human that was part of the group.

“Wow. New human.” Jasper said, looking down at the young woman with genuine curiosity. “who’s she?”

“Jasper, Patricia. Patricia, Jasper.” Connie spoke, introducing the two of them.

“Oh, nice to meet you!” Jasper replied with a soft smile. “So what brings you here?”

“Um… It’s my gem.” Steven replied. It had begun to dawn on him that he didn’t know what he had to do here. “There’s… actually, I came to see you. Been a while and thought I should check… no…”

Jasper looked concerned while Steven tried to muster the courage and try to find the words he desperately needed to use.

“Uh-huh… Connie, Amethyst, Peri, what’s the sitch?” Jasper asked flatly to the group that came with Steven.

“Well…” Connie began to try to find the words before being interrupted by Amethyst.

“Less tell, more show.” Amethyst interrupted while grabbing Seven’s hand and leading him onward. “Hey Seven, there’s something I wanna show ya!”

Leading Steven towards the center of the garden, the rest of the group followed behind. the closer they got to the center, the more it became clear to Connie what Amethyst was trying to do.

“I’m smelling what you’re stepping in Amethyst. Good idea!” Connie said catching up to Steven and Amethyst.

“I have you know that the pebbles and I keep this place in pristine condition. There’s no stepping into anything here!” Jasper spoke, sounding offended. Finally, they had made it to the center of the garden, to Roses fountain.

“Hey Steven! Remember THIS PER- oh that’s just weird.” Amethyst was beginning to speak before seeing that the statue in the center of the fountain had been replaced with two statues, one of Pink Diamond, and one of Rose Quartz, facing each other and holding hands. “Actually, I can work with this. So Steven! Tell me, which one of these is your mom?”

Steven’s skin instantaneously turned a vibrant pink while his gem grew brightly, causing Steven to nearly collapse to his knees, if it weren’t for Amethyst catching him.

“Jeez Amethyst! What happened to you trying to be more subtle?” Peridot asked as she, Connie, and Patricia ran over to Steven.

“W-what was that?!” Jasper asked, looking frightened. “His skin… Steven… What’s going on?”

“It’s… been going on for a few months now.” Steven said, slowly moving towards the fountain, and began splashing water on himself, trying to get the pink color to fade away. “And it seems to be whenever I see anything that either reminds me of mom, or of the diamonds, or just… I dunno. Something’s wrong.”

“Have you talked to Garnet about this? Emotions are something she’s better at dealing with than I am.” Jasper asked, looking worried. “I’m kind of the ‘lone-wolf gardener who can figure out why your petunias keep dying’ kind of gem. Speaking of, how’s them petunias, Peridot?”

“As dead as the newest series of Camp Pining Hearts. Seriously, Pierre and Paulette?”. Peridot asked, sounding mildly annoyed.

“Wait, I thought Paulette was with Percy?” Jasper asked, looking puzzled. “Is she playing the two of them?”

“Like a dang fiddle.” Amethyst replied.

“Jeez man, What happened to TV?” Jasper spoke with as much of an annoyed tone as Peridot.

“Lapis thought the same thing!” Peridot exclaimed. “She refuses to watch the show anymore, but I’m still glued to it! It’s really… lonely.”

Jasper looked down sympathetically at Peridot, who was getting her head patted by Amethyst. If there was a moment to be had, it was interrupted by Connie drawing attention back to he real problem.

“Fictional TV drama aside. Have most of you forgotten why we we’re here?” Connie asked, sounding frustrated as she helped Steven up.

“I haven’t.” Patricia said without thinking about it.

“Thank you, Patty!” Connie called out.

“ooof. Sorry. Um…” Jasper’s attention was brought back to Stevens condition, and then towards the statue in the center of the fountain. “Lapis’! get a tarp over the main statue, cover up any other statues with their faces on them as well! C’mon Steven, let’s get you to a bench.”

They had walked to a small seating area surrounded by hedges, away from the central fountain. Steven, shirtless, was still hunched over as he sat on the bench. His hand slightly hovering over his gem, which felt like it was glowing hot. Jasper looked down At Steven’s gem as she sat right next to him, a hand on his back. On the other side of Steven was Amethyst, holding Stevens' other hand.

“C’mon, buddy. Just breathe. Connie will be back soon.” Amethyst said, referring to the fact that Connie had gone back to the fountain to soak Steven’s shirt in the cold water of the fountain.

“Amethyst, how… how long has this been going on for?” Jasper asked, sounding concerned.

“About 5 months ago, give or take.” Amethyst replied. “Got any ideas?”

“Well, this is definitely a gem issue. Emotions might play some part in it, but I’m not sure what it has to do with me though.” Jasper replied. “Like… what can I do?”

“I… don’t… know…” Steven groaned. “Something just tells me that I should talk to you about it.”

“I-I’m not sure what to do here, Steven. Amethyst, have you talked to Garnet about thi-” Jasper was startled in mid-sentence by Steven flinching intensely, his hand touching his gem by accident, and then swiftly moving it away as though he accidentally touched a hot pan. “Okay… not going to mention the G-unit person again. But… you know?”

“She wasn’t any help. she keeps thinking that Steven should just learn to control his emotions better or something.” Amethyst replied, shaking her head.

“I’m thinking it’s because she’s jealous that Steven is talking to Priyanka instead of her.” Peridot added into the conversation.

“Honestly, for as long as I’ve known her, she doesn’t seem to be capable of normal emotion. I wasn’t sure if I should have said anything or not. Is… is she capable of having emotions?” Patricia asked.

“Eh, Anger can be considered an emotion.” Jasper said, shrugging. “She can be pretty determined.”

“More… like stubborn…” Steven gasped, a tear streaming down his cheek. At that moment, Connie emerged from around the corner, and jogged towards Steven, with a cold wet shirt in hand.

“Okay. Come on. Breathe. Just breathe.” Connie said, patting Steven’s fore head with the towel before placing it over his gem, and using one of his hands to press on it. “Maybe coming here might not have been the best of ideas. Should have met up somewhere else.”

“I’ll own up to this. I didn’t know that Steven seeing those… things would cause him to crumble like that.” Amethyst lamented, looking at Steven with guilt. “I’m sorry man. I just thought that if Jasper saw what was going on, she might have known how to help.”

“Not your fault, Amethyst. I wasn’t sure how to explain it.” Steven winced as he gently pressed on the gem with the cold, wet shirt. The glow was beginning to fade away slowly. “I’m sorry that we bothered you, Jasper. I’m just running out of people I can talk to about this. I’m tired, depressed, stressed out, and just really frustrated because of this.”

Mentioning that he was frustrated nearly caused the glow to come back, prompting everyone around him to try to bring him back from the brink.

“No. Steven. It’s okay. Really. I… kind of thought you might have forgotten about me. and who could blame you?” Jasper attempted to reason. “I mean… It’s me. who would want to even talk to me after everything… that happ-”

Jasper stopped suddenly in mid-sentence as Steven gave Jasper a hug.

“It’s okay, Jasper… I’m sorry.” Steven murmured. This brief moment of compassion brought a tear to Jaspers eye. Normally, she used to be brutish and blunt. A hard person to reach. But now, she was acting like an average Quartz, defying their physical appearance with hearts larger than themselves.

Within the next hour, every statue, emblem, and motif that had anything to do with Pink Diamond or Rose Quartz was covered either by large brown tarps, or by manipulating vines to cover them up. By that time, Steven was back to normal, his gem no longer glowed violently. The burn mark on his hand left by his searing hot gem was gone as well due to the healing properties of the fountain. though physically he was okay, mentally he was conflicted.

“Hey dude? You okay?” Amethyst asked cautiously. “You’ve been pretty quiet for, like, a really long time.”

Peridot and Jasper had taken Connie and Patricia on a small tour of the garden a while ago, leaving Amethyst and Steven on the bench. It was nearly like the afternoon on the beach, but not as dramatic. Despite Connie’s best efforts, Steven felt like he needed some time for himself. Seeing the images of his mom, in both forms, had somehow turned on a switch inside him. The more he thought about it, the more he realized that he felt a mix of regret, anger, and sadness. It seemed as though he needed a little time to sort things out. But it didn’t dampen the concern that came from everyone around him. Even with Amethyst there, Steven felt guilty that she stayed behind.

“Amethyst? Why did you stay?” Steven asked, still hunched over with a hand still on his gem. “Why not go on the tour?”

“Honestly Steven, I’ve been on the tour a ton of times. Jasper was really proud of everything she did here. And not going to lie, so am I. but after a while, the tour seemed kind of repetitive. A person can only grow so much in one place, you know?” Amethyst replied. “Plus, I’m worried about you. I feel really bad doing that. I didn’t know that it would affect you that much.”

“Actually, it didn’t affect me so much as it affected my gem.” Steven spoke, looking down at his gem. “Seriously, I kind of wish I could just remove this thing.”

“Really, man? I mean, that gem is a part of you. A part of who you are, for the most part.” Amethyst said, sounding shocked.

“It was also a part of ‘them’ as well.” Steven spoke. “I still remember when Garnet split off and we had to go find them. But now thinking about it, I don’t think you really answered my question. How did you feel about it? My mom being two people that were at war with one another?”

“Hrmm… If I tell you how I feel about it now, will you do the same?” Amethyst asked cautiously. Steven nodded in agreement. “Well, right now, honestly, I can’t say that I really feel any different than I did back then. I wasn’t a part of the war, all that I’ve heard about Pink Diamond was second hand knowledge from some gems that might have been a bit biased, and I’ve never even seen a diamond until we met Peridot and her little chat with Yellow Diamond.”

“So… you don’t feel betrayed or angry or anything?” Steven asked.

“Not really. Rose kind of had her reasons. She did everything she could, and she was eventually pushed to the breaking point. Figuratively speaking, of course.” Amethyst replied, to which Steven understood what she meant. “So in reality, I guess I was given nearly the same information as you. Rose kind of raised me. I never had any true grasp on what it meant to be a gem. I was just me being me.”

“I sometimes wonder what it would have been like if she was still around. Physically. Would she have told me the same thing? Would she have been more truthful? And why would she had forced Pearl to keep a secret like that for so long?” Steven fired off a small string of rhetorical questions. “I guess even now, we’re still not feeling any different.”

“Even after knowing about the Obsidian drop pod and that Anchorage place, things just feel the same still.” Amethyst lamented. “I mean, it sucked that something like that was kept a secret, but I think it might have hit you harder than it did me. I mean, they only talked about the war in passing. But when you came into the picture, Garnet and Pearl really tried to mold you into her image. It was wrong of them to do it.”

“So… I’m not a bad person for hating them? Pearl and Garnet?” Steven asked.

“Steven, the only time you were ever a ‘bad person’, it was when you cranked up the himbo meter to 11 when you let Aquamarine kidnap you. And even then, it was with the best of intentions.” Amethyst replied while rolling her eyes. “Steven, you’re not a bad person for hating those two. Cause, honestly, I would be a bad person too.”

“What?” Steven asked, looking confused.

“I… I didn’t like what Garnet and Pearl tried to do when you were growing up. They tried to force you to be someone you weren’t, when they should have appreciated you for who you were. The person I always saw you as.” Amethyst spoke, looking at Steven with pride in the fact that he always found a way to be himself. “I only called you rose twice before just calling you Steven. Pearl and Garnet, even though they called you Steven, treated you like you were Rose or Pink but with amnesia. I wish I could… have protected you better.”

“Well, I’m alive still. So, you’re doing a good job so far.” Steven said, smiling at Amethyst. “But, Amethyst, I-”

“Hey Steven!” Connie called out to him as she was walking towards him. “Tours done! Got some souvenirs! Know of anything we could do with rose water?”

Steven and Amethyst's attention switched over to Connie and Patricia, carrying around a large glass jugs of what looked to be water.

“I honestly don’t know what to do with it.” Steven replied with a shrug.

“I actually know of one or two recipes that call for it.” Patricia said as she struggled to carry the jug with one hand. “I mean, it only calls for a few teaspoons, but these things keep well. I hope.”

“I hope so, those have a shelf life of a thousand years or so… I think.” Jasper spoke as she was walking behind them.

“You’re looking better, Biscuit. But how are you feeling?” Connie asked as she sat down next to him, placing the jug on the ground.

“Well, I was kind of talking to Amethyst about it.” Steven replied before letting out a deep sigh. “I’m… I’m thinking about staying here for a bit.”

“Wha?” Jasper asked, looking surprised, just like everyone else. “Wait, why?”

“Well… things aren’t so great at home. And I kind of want to maybe get some peace and quiet. I think I can find that here.” Steven replied calmly.

“That… actually sounds like a decent idea.” Amethyst said as she nodded. “I kind of know what you mean about taking a break from Gar- I mean them.”

“The only problem is, well, ‘them’.” Connie added. “If they find out you’re gone, they’ll probably try to find you. I don’t even want to think about what they’ll do when they do find you.”

“Well… maybe someone could shapeshift to look like me? It would only be for a day. Maybe Obsidian?” Steven asked, looking unsure.

“On one hand, I’m not sure she would be the most reliable of people. But I can’t think of anyone else.” Connie replied.

“She does have Steven’s hair color, I think. All she would need to do is just lay inside of a sleeping bag and just shape shift for a day. All Garnet would do is just open the door to look inside.” Patricia thought out loud. “It might actually work.”

“But… she might want something in return.” Steven sighed, dreading the things she would probably want from him. “foot rubs, being carried around for a week, 100 bagel sandwiches a day for the weekend. A red balloon that has to be of a particular shape, size, and color.”

“Breathe Steven, and also, we’ll deal with her ourselves.” Connie said, hitting her hand in a sign of assured aggression. “And if she asks for any favors, you won’t do it alone, weird or otherwise. You need time for yourself. A mental health vacation.”

“Yeah man, we got your back.” Amethyst spoke.

“Thanks, guys. I really needed this.” Steven replied.

“I’ll have someone come back here with your medications and a spare sleeping bag, okay?” Connie asked as she kissed Steven goodbye.

“Okay. And… thank you. For helping me, Connie.” Steven responded

“You’re welcome Steven.” Connie replied. “I love you.”

“I love you too, Connie. Bye.” Steven said, getting one last hug in before she said her farewell. One by one, they said goodbye to Steven and departed, leaving him alone with Jasper. A notion that once terrified him, now brought him a sense of ease.

“You’re lucky to have friends like them Steven.” Jasper spoke, looking on as the beam of light flew back up into the sky. “You sure about this though?”

“Yeah. I’m sure. I just don’t think I can deal with Garnet and Pearl right now. If they don’t want to help me out, then maybe you could.” Steven spoke, looking up at Jasper.

“I’ll do what I can, Steven. I have a lot to make up for. I just hope I’m up for this kind of thing.” Jasper said, looking down at Steven and his gem. “Come on, I’ll show you where you’re sleeping.”

“There’s a place in the garden for that?” Steven asked as Jasper walked back to the entry way.

“Well, yeah. This place is more than just a garden. It’s a place where gems can come to heal themselves. Both physically, and mentally.” Jasper replied, before gasping. “YOU’VE NEVER TAKEN THE TOUR!”

“I don’t think I ever did… sorry.” Steven said, sounding nervous and taken aback by Jasper's outburst. Looking up, all Steven could see was Jasper, grinning broadly with excitement.

“Oh, you’re going to love what I did here! You might actually be proud of me, Steven!” Jasper spoke enthusiastically. “Oh, wait, want to hop on my back? Not sure how you’re feeling physically. I don’t want you to feel tired in the middle of the tour.”

A strange thought popped into his head. Maybe, it was time to do something out of the ordinary.

“You know what… Yeah. I would like that.” Steven smiled. Jasper crouched down as Steven hopped onto her back.


	2. Campfire conversation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steven takes a tour of the garden while catching up with Jasper. They also talk about Steven's gem, as well as the origins of the Diamonds.

Walking through the garden, Steven couldn’t help but be in awe of how many new plants were growing here.

“How long did it take for you to pull this off?” Steven asked.

“Eh… not sure how most people can record time. All I know is that I started on it some time after the drill incident.” Jasper answered. “I felt really bad not being there, Steven. I was still trying to figure myself out. But when I saw what you and everyone else was doing in Beach City, helping people and stuff, I kind of wanted to do that too.”

“Why didn’t you help rebuild then?” Steven asked, ducking from a branch as Jasper strolled further in.

“I… was ashamed, Steven. I didn’t think there would be any room or place for me there. But at the same time, I needed to do something.” Jasper replied as they got to the center of the garden where the large fountain and pool was. The central statue was covered in a tarp, patches of moss, and some flowering vines. “So… me and some lapis’ got together and decided to make a place for gems to heal. Little Homeworld could only do so much, but there were gems who were worse off than others. They came from planets that were still in the middle of fighting, or they were corrupted and needed healing. Most of the time, if there was something, I wasn’t sure about, I always asked ‘what would Steven do?’.”

Steven looked at everything but the center statue. Gems were swimming around in the pool, some lazily floating on their backs near the edge, and others playing around. And then there were beds of hot coal where gems could lay down and relax.

“Not going to lie, you did more than I could. This place looks nice.” Steven said, resting his head on top of Jaspers.

“Well, this isn’t all of it. This is just the main healing pool and hot coal massage beds. It’s kind of relaxes the gem. Alleviates pressure. But I wouldn’t recommend you doing that. I know the concept of barbecue, and I don’t want you to be turned to ash.” Jasper replied, looking up at him. “And I did get a lot of help from the Lapis’. If it weren’t for them, this place would be, well, kind of a mess. C’mon, I’ll show you what else we do here.”

The tour went on to show an alcove where gems were learning how to spin pottery and blow glass. Steven swore he saw the army and leggy gems working on a few bottles.

“We’re those…” Steven started to ask before trailing off in confusion.

“Some of the rubies that used to follow me around a long time ago? Yeah. not sure what happened to Eyeball, Navy is still bubbled.” Jasper began to reply. “But Doc, get this, Doc is a tour guide at the Diamond museum on Homeworld. She got a little fancy suit and everything. It’s kind of cute.”

“Wow. Kind of seems like everyone… has something going on.” Steven sighed.

“Seems like you haven’t been paying attention, ‘Biscuit’.” Jasper grunted.

“Please don’t call me that.” Steven said as Jasper picked him up and held him at eye level.

“Steven, you say that everyone has found something for themselves like it was too late for you. It’s far from too late. I mean, it took me thousands of years to figure out what works for me!” Jasper explained as she put Steven onto the ground. “Those rubies back there, they’re… not the best at blowing glass, but they’re still working on it. Why? Because it’s something they feel that works for them. Their calling. Their passion. Their craft. Before, they were just taking orders and being rubies. But they weren’t being themselves. Kind of see what I’m saying here?”

“Well… Kind of?” Steven replied, sounding unsure. Some of the things they said made sense, but he was unsure.

“Well, better than none of it making sense. Come, I got a couple more places to show you.” Jasper said, gesturing Steven to follow. Walking through the garden, Steven saw alcoves reserved for classes, small libraries, and basic recreational areas. But the further he walked, the more he smelled something odd. The answer to what it was came from a large space at the end of the row. Semi large cylinders, as tall as he was, sat on top of natural burners, wisps of steam coming off from the tops, entering flumes that lead to pipes, that lead to more cylinders. Then there were large troughs that had something green and slimy in them.

“What’s going on here?” Steven asked, startled to see something strange and out of place.

“My piece de resistance.” Jasper said, smiling. “when I returned here, everything was overgrown. Pathways were completely covered in dead petals and leaves. The vines were straight up feral. No one had tended to the place for a while. It didn’t seem like anyone was tending to it ever since I was cured of the corruption.”

“That was a few years ago. And the vines just… grew back that quickly?” Steven asked.

“Yeah, it threw me for a loop too. It had only been a year, but at the same time, a lot could happen in that time. So, while you were rebuilding Beach City, I gave this place new life. Plus, there were a lot of gems from the colonies who were either lost, confused, or just didn’t feel like being a part of something so oppressive.” Jasper said, rolling her eyes. “And I didn’t really feel like making piles of trash outside of the garden, so I improvised. Got a few pointers from Peridot, met some Lapis’ that wanted to be more creative and less destructive. Found some Amethysts that grew tired babysitting humans on a spaceship. I definitely couldn’t have done all of this by myself.”

“Makes sense.” Steven said, while looking at the green substance. “But what’s going on here though?”

“Oh. Well, the vines seem to have the ability to buff out scratches from our gems as well as heal small fractures. That’s what that green stuff is for. The Amethysts just kind of roll around really fast inside of there, mushing up the vines. They pretty much turn it into some sort of rolling match. Pretty fun to watch!” Jasper replied with a slight smile. “I don’t participate in that though. I’ve kind of grown out of that kind of stuff. Kind of why I just stick with making oils and rose water. And for some weird reason, some humans are giving me some weird light green leaves in exchange. Not going to lie, can’t really make anything out of them.”

“I think that’s money.” Steven said.

“Eh, for the most part, yeah. still haven’t figured out what the square leaves are though.” Jasper spoke. “But, yeah. it’s not much, but it’s something, you know? Took me millennia to find this place, but I have a feeling you’ll find your thing much sooner. You have a knack for helping people, but you’ve forgotten to help the one person who’s more important than most people right now.”

“Myself?” Steven said, lifting a single eyebrow.

“No, Steven. yourse- oh, you already said it.” Jasper replied, feeling awkward.

“But… how though?” Steven asked, feeling slightly frustrated. “I tried going to Garnet for advice only to get a cold shoulder from her. Pearl seems to either be avoiding me, or just making me feel miserable. Priyanka’s trying her best, but I keep feeling like I’m in a loop. And my friends… I’m doing it again. A loop of loops.”

“Hmm… breathe Steven, and follow me to where you’re sleeping.” Jasper said. “I think that generally, there might be anything wrong with you.”

“What do you mean?” Steven asked, walking right beside her at a quick pace.

“Well, I remember watching a lot of human TV. And it seems like some of your basic problems are just basic problems. The real problem might be your gem.” Jasper replied.

“Well, yeah, there’s that. But what about all of the other things? Who am I anymore if there’s nothing left to save? How can I still be a hero, when there’s no one to save or protect?” Steven asked another set of questions. Jasper seemed to have been lost in thought as they went through the maze of hedges. “Well?”

“I’m thinking, Steven. we’re almost at the bungalows.” Jasper said, sounding mildly frustrated. A a few more winding turns, and a long pathway later, Steven stumbled upon what seems to be the largest gazebo he’s ever seen. The ceiling looks to be tall and wide enough to fit a Diamond. The walls were lined with small alcoves that could fit a gem. Sadly, none of them seem to be suitable for Steven to sleep in, but he was less focused on something much larger.

“Wha… I… words… gone?” Steven mumbled.

“Yeah, Connie and Patricia said those exact same words. Welcome to the Diamond Gazebo!” Jasper declared. “After seeing this place, White Diamond wanted to contribute somehow. I wasn’t quite sure, but she insisted on donating an old palanquin that belonged to someone.”

Steven couldn’t believe his eyes. It all looked so magnificent. But also, familiar. It slowly dawned on him what this place was.

“This place… it was my mom’s palanquin.” Steven said, feeling himself slightly glow for a few moments, but then returning back to normal. It was as though his gem seemed to be telling him something. “But the color… it doesn’t look pink…”

“You… I never really thought about it, but… you could be right. The only thing missing is the chair.” Jasper realized as well. “It might not be your mom’s though. but then again, it could have been refurbished. Changed to be something completely different. A Diamond’s palanquin is mostly a glorified drop ship for Diamonds. But this place is mostly for resting, or sleeping. Or both. Speaking of, if she comes by this afternoon, she might make you a place to sleep.”

At that point, Steven heard a voice squeaked out from behind him. It was a gem with pink pigtails, carrying around a pebble in her hood. Spinel.

“Hey Steven!” Spinel greeted as she walked past him. She proceeded to offload the pebbles from her hoody, and pulled out a piece of paper from her pocket, showing an unusual image of a small tropical awning. “Okay, crew, you know what to do. pick a spot inside here, and build something like this. Bed, bathroom, just the basics, but make it look nice. Aaaaaaaand go!”

At that point, the pebbles looked at the picture, and started to carve lines on the ground.

“Will this take long?” Jasper inquired.

“Not really, maybe an hour or two, to-” Spinel tried to reply before being interrupted by many small, squeaky voices.

“Finished!” The pebbles cheered. Looking over at the far end of the palanquin, Steven, Jasper, and Spinel were shocked to see that they had created a decently sized cabana. It was open aired, had a decently sized bed with cushions, and a door that seems to lead to a small room on the outside of the palanquin, which might be the restroom.

“How were they able to make a bed out of rock?” Steven asked.

“Not going to lie, Steven: I once saw them make a bounce house in the shape of a sand castle out of sand. A FUNCTIONING bounce house.” Spinel replied while shaking her head. “There are some things about those little pebbles that I don’t quite get. And I’m not sure I want to know.”

“Strange. And they belonged to… you know?” Jasper murmured as she watched them build a fire pit in the middle of the room.

“Yep. They’re hers.” Steven said, remembering the last time he saw them. He was afraid that if they saw him, they would call him by a name that wasn’t his. A name he dreads hearing. But as they finished up, all they did was wave at him and smiled. They never said a word. The feeling of dread had been replaced with a feeling of abandonment. Another feeling he knew all too well as they climbed up Spinel and nestled themselves inside her pockets and hood.

“So. Got any plans?” Spinel asked.

“Honestly, I was going to ask you… why are you here?” Steven asked.

“Well, apart from getting your meds and sleeping bag, This place… is kind of my home away from home, you know?” Spinel replied.

“Your home away from home is a garden? I thought you hated gardens?” Steven asked.

“Well, I do, but this place is more than that. At least here I can move around. Read books, make pottery, tidy things up, just stay busy.” Spinel replied while shrugging. “A little structure never cracked a gem… I think.”

“Yeah. maybe I need something as well. a little distraction.” Steven said.

“I do need some help with pruning roses.” Jasper mentioned.

“And maybe we could do some pottery!” Spinel added enthusiastically.

“Yeah. definitely could use the distraction. Let’s do it!” Steven replied.

Much of the afternoon was spent either pruning the roses, or making pottery. Nothing huge, or exciting. It was just something to take his mind off of things. By early evening, he had forgotten the statues and motifs were even there. He had gotten lost in the hedgerows a few times, but there seemed to always be a Lapis or two fluttering about, gently raining water from above in certain places. By the end of the day, Steven was exhausted, but feeling better than he did the day prior. His gem never ached once. His back did, but not his gem. He felt normal, for once in what felt like years. And any aches he had felt was easily remedied by a dip into the fountain.

That evening, Amethyst came by with a couple of sandwiches for Steven to eat. She gave him an update on what’s going on at home.

“Peridot and Lapis have been keeping Pearl and Garnet away from your room. Priyanka’s been kind of concerned about you, but she can keep a secret.” Amethyst said after eating half of her sandwich she brought from home. “She, Greg, and Doug all think that this is a good idea. The last time you had a real vacation, you nearly… yeah. they weren’t sure about Jasper watching over you, but I vouched for her. You should be good.”

“Thanks Amethyst.” Steven and Jasper said at the same time. They smiled at one another and Amethyst continued.

“So what have you been up to here?” Amethyst asked Steven.

“Eh, picking roses, making some weird salve stuff that heals gems. Might work on humans too. Made some pottery.” Steven listed off the activities.

“He had an idea of putting silly faces on them.” Spinel added. “They look awesome, not going to lie.”

“Also did some sweeping and stuff. Oh, also, got to check out the small library here. Books seem kind of split on either writing about how glorious the diamonds are, or just a list of all the gem’s they’ve shattered.” Steven continued, wincing at the thought of the book he read that just had pages of the different kinds of gems that were supposedly shattered. “Honestly, i… kind of wanted to learn more about where the diamonds themselves came from. I just have a feeling that there might be more to all of this than just the thought of White Diamond having always been around. The gems were created by either Blue, Yellow, or Pink. And Blue, Yellow, and Pink being made by White. So… who made White Diamond?”

The group, all sitting near the fire pit, sat quietly in contemplation on the question. This was a thought that never really came to any of their minds.

“I’m not sure I want to find out. Kind of the whole ‘when you stare into the abyss’ thought scares me.” Spinel said, pulling her hood over her head while a handful of pebbles were still in there. “Like, what if some ancient race of long dead beings created her to be used as a weapon, only to have her turn on them? Or maybe she’s always existed, even before the universe itself?”

“Eh. I think she came out of the ground just like the rest of us.” Jasper thought out loud. “Like, maybe a comet struck the planet, some strange biological thing happened that caused her gem to create a powerful glow. Strong enough to create a massive literal body of light.”

“They both sound like decent contenders for plausible theories. Maybe it could be both though. started off as a strange meteorite, then crafted into a giant gem being using some ancient technology, and tried to use her as some sort of servant to make the perfect empire.” Steven spoke as he gazed into the fire. “But the people who live there were far from perfect. So she ultimately created her own perfect empire using the natural resources within the planet. And the more workers and soldiers she needed, the more planets she had to conquer. And things just spiraled from there.”

Jasper, Spinel, and Amethyst looked at Steven with wide eyes and slightly gaping mouths.

“Oooookay. Another theory I’m going to put out there: camp fire theories and philosophies are crazy.” Amethyst said as she stood up. “And I should probably head back to the temple. If I’m gone for too long, they could get suspicious.”

“Yeah. Probably best to go back.” Steven sighed as he got and gave Amethyst a hug. “I’ll hopefully be ready to go back tomorrow afternoon. For now, I just need some time away from them.”

“I get it dude.” Amethyst spoke as she walked out of the repurposed palanquin. “Even I have to get away from them to wail on some drums for a couple of hours straight. Gnight dude!”

“Later, Amethyst!” Steven called out as she shapeshifted into an owl, and flew back to the warp pad.

Steven sat back down with Jasper, Spinel, staring back into the fire.

“So… Spinel? May I ask you something?” Steven asked.

“Sup?” Spinel replied.

“Why are you really here? On Earth? I wasn’t sure if I really got an answer for that or not.” Steven asked sheepishly.

“Well, on one hand, the Diamonds can be REALLY overbearing. Or at least at first. I was just one of the last reminders of ‘Pink’s old things ‘. But after a while, things got pretty boring” Spinel began. “The Diamonds were still in the process of rebuilding Homeworld after the rebellion, and also restructuring things. They seemed too busy for me. I would say it was the same with Pink, but the big difference was that I wasn’t told to stay there. I always went back once every so often to check on things, but for most of the time, I was free to go and do whatever I want. It just gave me a chance to grow, you know?”

“That oddly seems to be the running theme in things.” Steven replied. “But… not sure I’m ready to just up and go anywhere. Especially not now. Not with my gem being the way it is.”

“True. But you have to admit, you haven’t been feeling a lot of pain or haven’t glowed pink much.” Jasper noted.

“Yeah… but that was just today. And I will admit, you guys did say the words “Diamond” and “Pink” a lot, and I haven’t glowed.” Steven agreed with Jasper. “But that was just today. I haven’t been reminded that I’m supposed to be someone I’m not. But maybe in the future… I might want to travel too.”

“See, making plans already!” Spinel cheered.

“Yeah. kind of. Just taking it slow. But, Spinel, I’m guessing there’s another reason why you’re here then? You did say that that was one of the reasons.” Steven started to ask. “What are the others?”

Spinel sat quietly for a few moments before speaking in a slightly lower tone.

“Well… it’s you. And the Earth. I really screwed things up, and then I just left. I came back to try to fix what I can. I originally thought it was just buildings I destroyed, but it seems I did more damage than what can be seen.” Spinel replied, sounding distant. “Seeing you glow pink like that that night. It reminded me of… the past. Seeing Pink’s Pearl brought back a lot of memories as well. Honestly, Steven, I feel like something’s wrong. Something’s really wrong.”

“What do you mean?” Steven asked, concerned.

“Well, some of the Sapphires back on Homeworld got spooked for some reason. Some were saying that something was coming back. Someone.” Spinel replied quietly. “They were murmuring and stuff about Pink Diamond. They weren’t making any sense. But just to be safe, I wanted to make sure you were okay. And sure enough, you’re not.”

“Wait, so what you’re saying is that my powers going all weird and out of control might have something to do with the Sapphires on Homeworld kind of glitching out?” Steven asked, sounding highly concerned.

“Well, my guess: Yeah. and I’m really trying to figure out what… well… hrmm…” Spinel stopped in mid-sentence.

“Spinel?” Steven looked over a Spinel, who began to bury her face into her knees.

“Okay, bad idea, but… the rejuvenator. The scythe? What if… it reset you?” Spinel asked Steven, as she looked directly at his gem.

“Well, it did, but then I remembered who I was.” Steven replied.

“No… what if it reset your gem to be back to… well… I’m not sure if I’m using this phrase correctly, but, what if it went back to ‘factory settings’?” Spinel asked, fear being visibly seen in her eyes. Steven’s mind had stopped thinking altogether as he cautiously looked down at his gem.

“You mean… like… the powers and such… aren’t coming from his original gem, but…” Jasper asked cautiously, looking over at Steven’s gem.

“This… is probably the most terrifying campfire story I have ever been a part of.” Steven croaked. The air around them had grown thick with an unseen feeling of dread. All Steven could do is stand up and walk to his bungalow. “I’m… going to call it a night.”

“Probably for the best.” Jasper said before standing up and stretching. “I’ll go check on the rose water batch before I turn in too. G'night, Steven.”

“Steven?” Spinel asked, looking up at him. “Listen… I could be wrong. You’re still you. And all of this… you haven’t glowed pink most of the day. It’s a start. You’re going to be okay. And we’ll do whatever we can to help, okay?”

“Yeah… you’re right. I’m still just me. And this is just another problem I can overcome with a little help.” Steven replied as he crawled into his sleeping bag. “G'night Spinel.”

“Goodnight, Steven.” Spinel said, before turning to look at the fire pit, hoping she was wrong.


	3. Breaking Point

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Amethyst and Steven attempt to escape from the garden when uninvited guests come, but things don't go as planned as things were said that cannot be taken back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No one gets shattered...

Steven was back on the beach again. Looking around, he knew not just where he was, but when. Looking down, he was short again, and wearing a tuxedo. The house was destroyed, and he could feel the loud thump of footsteps in the sand. He looked up into the dark mauve sky to see large entities towering over him. He attempted to scramble away from the tall, shadowy figures, but the sand had swallowed his limbs to keep him in place. Everything around him was working against him. His eyes fixated on the shadowy figures that crept closer to him. Their forms had begun to take shape. The mauve shaded stars scattered and reformed in the center of the figures, arranged in the shape of a pentagon inside of a pentagon. Their outline had taken the shape of 3 large, terrifying beings: Pink Diamond, Rose Quartz, and Steven himself. All three had begun to glow bright pink as their footsteps shook the ground beneath him. With each step, he swore he heard someone calling out to him. The closer they got, the louder the sound was. The giant, Diamond-sized entities were all around him. Steven tried to scream, but nothing came out. His friends, his family, they were nowhere to be seen. As the Diamond sized Steven loomed over him, the ground began to quake harder. The Diamond Steven lifted his foot high up over Steven, who was being slowly swallowed up by the sand, and slowly dropped it.

Steven’s eyes shot open wide to a mid-morning day. The light blinded him for a moment. He had also thought that the sound he heard in his dream still echoed in his head, but in reality, it was Garnet and Spinel trying to wake Steven up.

“Dammit, Steven, wake up already!” Amethyst said in a panic. “Steven! They’re here. I don’t know how they found out, but we have to move.”

“Gah… wait… who? Who’s here?” Steven groaned, still feeling sleepy.

“Pearl and Garnet. And they are really angry. We gotta get you out of her and fast.” Spinel said, looking terrified. “Maybe get you to one of the old colonies, or maybe Homeworld? Someplace they won’t find you!”

The thought of Pearl and Garnet being here in the garden caused Steven to wake up immediately. Scrambling out of bed and rolling up his sleeping bag, Steven gathered his belongings and followed spinel through the maze of rose bushes. Every so often, Steven’s skin would flash slightly before dissipating, which only happens when he hears shouting beyond the hedges. After minutes of running through the maze and following Spinel, she suddenly stopped at a corner where they heard people arguing.

“Where is he, Jasper!” Garnet growled.

“For the freaking millionth time, I haven’t seen Steven at all! Why would he want to come here?” Jasper protested. “I haven’t seen him since the Anchorage thing, and to be honest, from what I’ve been hearing from some gems, I’m getting really worried about him!”

“Why would YOU ever want to worry about him? Weren’t you trying to kill him a few years ago?” Pearl screeched.

“And a year ago, I was fighting alongside, not just him, but all of you as well!” Jasper yelled back. “now if you don’t mind, if you have no actual business here, or if you do not require any healing, I suggest you leave this place!”

“Why should we leave? Even after how you- you- RUINED THIS PLACE!” Pearl yelled back.

“I ruined it?!” Jasper asked, sounding insulted. “When I came back here, the vines had the run of the place. The bushes were thick with overgrowth, and the fountain was running low on water. Ruined it? I saved it!”

“Saved it? Then why cover up the statues? Why drape them with moss and vines when you-” Pearls voice trailed off as Steven, Amethyst, and Peridot heard sounds of ripping fabric. Things grew eerily quiet for a few moments before Pearl started back up again.

“Wha… WHAT IS THIS MONSTROSITY?!” Pearl shrieked, apparently seeing the new fountain centerpiece of both Rose and Pink Diamond. “What kind of sick joke is this?!”

“That is the representation of two worlds with one person in common! The aristocracy and those who challenge the stifling rule of, you simpleton!” A Lapis on the other side of the hedge yelled. “We worked hard on that, you pleb!”

“OH BUG OFF!” Pearl yelled. “Of course YOU would destroy the fountain, Jasper! Of all the people who bore a grudge, you would turn this place into some kind of commune!”

“If I wanted to ‘destroy the fountain’, it would be a crater right now! I helped breathe new life into this place, and I had help from other people who agreed that it should be given a better purpose. New life. YOU, on the other hand, would have just left it to grow out of control!” Jasper growled. “Just like your nostalgic view on Pink Diamond! You would rather remember her for who she was, and neglecting what she left behind! And even now, you neglect people just so you could wallow away in secret!”

“And what are YOU doing then, Jasper?!” Garnet barked. “Are you saying you’re not doing the same thing here? Why erect a statue of Pink Diamond to replace Rose Quartz?!”

“Did you not even listen to the Lapis’, They were the ones who sculpted the statue to include BOTH Pink and Rose! Not me!” Jasper yelled back. “And oh my freaking stars, they were right! I didn’t want to believe it, but with how you two are overreacting to some minor things, no wonder Steven ran away from home! Who would want to deal with this kind of toxic behavior!”

“Rich coming from you, Jasper!” Yelled Garnet, the sound of her fists changing into large gloves could be heard from a distance.

“Don’t you dare do anything stupid here, Garnet! I’ve learned how to change, and how to be a less toxic person! I don’t want to fight you. But have you even considered why Steven ran away?” Jasper attempted to plead rationality. “Have you ever given any thought to the things he’s going through? Don’t you even care about his feelings?!”

“HIS FEELINGS DON’T MATTER!” Garnet roared.

A hush fell over the group of gems. The air had vanished from the garden. The roses had either closed up tightly, or had fallen off completely. The water in the pool began to glow an unearthly pink hue. The only sound that could be heard were the footsteps that were coming around the corner. The sound of flip flops, crushing the dead leaves beneath them. The sound of a rolled up sleeping bag dropping to the ground with a muted thud onto the slightly pink ground caught the attention of everyone there.

“My feelings don’t matter… huh?” Steven asked flatly. The Lapis’ had gently glided up from the ground and back to a safe distance. Their eyes screamed of visual terror and fear at the glowing Steven. “I’m not surprised to be honest, coming from two gems like you. One who’s been avoiding me for ages, and the other giving either terrible advice, or just lashing out. I’m genuinely not surprised anymore.”

“St-Steven… i… I didn’t mean it like th-” Garnet began to speak before a gust of wind knocked everyone back.

“WHAT DID YOU MEAN THEN, FUSION?!” roared Steven in an otherworldly voice. All eyes were focused on the brightly glowing Steven as he began to hover in the air. “WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY THAT? HOW MUCH OF ME DOESN’T MATTER? HOW MUCH OF MY EMOTIONS? MY PAIN? HOW MUCH WILL IT TAKE TO MAKE THEM MATTER?”

“S-Steven! Come on, buddy! Breathe! Calm down!” Cried Jasper, who was leaning against the side of the fountain.

“SHUT UP, Jasper! You’re making it worse!” Pearl yelled.

“NO, PEARL. YOU MADE IT WORSE! GIVING OUT THE DIPLOMAS AND GIVING UP ON US. ON ME. ALL SO YOU CAN FORGET ABOUT ME? IGNORE ME? WHY? WHY DO THAT?!”

“I-I’m allowed to have a life you know! I don’t have to explain myself to you, Steven!” Pearl squawked back.

“Calm down this instant, Steven! You’re making things worse on yourself! Get your powers under control this instant!” Garnet yelled, her visor gone, revealing frustrated and strained eyes.

“OH YEAH! LET ME JUST FLIP THE SWITCH THAT CAN JUST MAKE EVERYTHING NORMAL AGAIN! OH, WAIT, THAT DOESN’T EXIST, DOES IT?!” Steven roared, his fists clenched as he grew larger. “MAYBE YOU COULD TAKE A LOOK INTO THE FUTURE, FIND THE WORST POSSIBLE OUTCOME, AND TELL ME TO DO THE OPPOSITE!”

“Steven! Dude! Brea-” Amethyst attempted to call out to him before being interrupted.

“Amethyst?! And Spinel?! I knew you two had something to do with him going missing! How can you be so stupid as to let him go off in his condition!” Pearl yelled at them, causing a gusting whirlwind to form around Steven.

“DON’T YOU DARE TALK TO MY FRIENDS LIKE THAT! THEY WERE THERE FOR ME WHEN I NEEDED THEM THE MOST! WHEN I NEEDED YOU THE MOST!” Steven’s voice thundered through the roaring wind. The ground beneath them began to crack. His eyes fixated on Pearl with fierce ferocity, only to have it switched to garnet, who launched her gloves at him. Steven gazed at them as they were slowly coming towards him. Time had slowed to a crawl, allowing him to gently flip the fists to fire back on Garnet and Pearl. Seeing a fight unfold In front of her, Amethyst ran around the corner and drew her whip from her gem.

“Steven! I’m sorry for this, man!” Amethyst cried out as she swung two of her whips towards him, lashing his arms to his sides. “But you might need to splash some water on your face!”

Amethyst attempted to swing Steven away from the gems, who had been knocked back towards the edge of the fountain. Sadly, Steven didn’t budge, but instead had the look of someone who had been betrayed. Seeing her struggle, Spinel swung her arms like whips towards him as well. The Lapis’, in a group effort, began to use the water from the fountain to both bind him, and use it to heal him. Slowly, his glow faded, his eyes shut, and gravity gave way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next Time: Steven needs some time to cool off, and he can't do it when surrounded by people he either cares about, needs some time away from, and people he would do without. "The Refuge, Part 1: return to Roses room.
> 
> Relatively short chapter to a long story. Not going to lie, the original episode this was loosely based off of was (to me) worse than most Ronaldo episodes. This one, on the other-hand, i wanted to give Jasper the redemption and peace she deserved. Plus, Steven needed somewhat of a spa day. at the same time, certain questions that were asked may end up being answered sooner than expected. Answers to questions we never got from the original show. If you're confused about Jasper's road to redemption, you might want to look into the previous arc.


End file.
